“The DNA Train” of Anagnosti, as a cultural testament for the audience

By Ben Andoni / Votra Magazine 

For a long time, the public has missed the creation of one of the most renowned Albanian artists of cinematography. Age, extensive commitments, a gentle departure from creation, and meditation have now taken their toll. Dhimitër Anagnosti no longer works, but he converses, listens, and exchanges opinions with a few peers of his age, while, as he has done for decades, he shares his daily life with his colleague and life partner, the well-known Albanian Film actress Roza Anagnosti.

In art (especially in cinema), the poetic spirit can constitute an element where emotions, feelings, situations, daily life, and many other moments, up to sublimity, can transform and serve a greater understanding of artistic expression. Likewise, it is true that some elements are indeed difficult to express with words, just as the letters of a word sometimes convey much more than endless images. In the artistic terrain, reality functions thanks to countless elements that help emotions come to life and materialize.

Indeed, a host of contemporary authors, among whom our renowned director and artist Dhimitër Anagnosti stands out as few others, have embraced this as both a challenge and an opportunity to express their opus. Not coincidentally, Anagnosti’s example, enriched by his personality and artistic expression in various works, has contributed to the enlightenment of entire generations of Albanians. With professionalism in art, understanding of morality, aesthetic canons, the beauty and elevation of storytelling, and occasionally his creations in different genres, he has left an indelible mark.

In the history of cinematography, some directors have managed to bring poetry to the screen. Anagnosti, through his creations, has gifted us not only meaningful metaphorical tales in cinematography but also beautiful studies in a poetic language that have eased the artistic tension of his works, breathing life into his creation and the challenge of writing itself.

This has also happened in this latest volume, which is being handed to readers, prepared by his family, where Dhimitër Anagnosti is presented not just as a thinker, essayist, and observer but above all as a poet and refined creator. Carefully intertwined genres have simultaneously conveyed the philosophical filmmaker and poet, the man who respects his homeland and national heritage, and, above all, the personality that seeks the meaning of life in every pore of existence. Truly, his culture, respect for national treasures, high philosophical understanding of life, and profound social reflections make his thought span vast fields, showing us the multidimensional scope where readers and viewers understand the source of his art. He never knew professional or political compromise, but above all, the sense of the individual who struggles.

Thus, it is no coincidence that Anagnosti was among the first to anticipate the era of democratic rule, just as he openly expressed his disappointment with the chameleons of our democracy and many of the issues that surround us: “Servilëve të përulur kurrizi u del: ‘Gungaçët’ e gëzuar\ për këtë kurrë s’janë ankuar.

 From “Diktatura te Demokratura,” the title of one of his poems, he conveys not only his patriotic disappointment but also his concern for the reality that surrounds him, the one his people will inherit—not just his close ones but also his beloved compatriots. Anagnosti often speaks in the plural because he sees himself as part of his generation’s responsibility toward the country. When it feels as though his words are absorbed by the ether, rebellion suddenly lifts its:

“Migjen! ‘Mali’ hesht!
E në shekuj ka heshtur!
Edhe në shekullin e ri’
‘Mali’ përsëri hesht.”

In this latest volume, where various forms of creation—studies, poetry, meditations, and short stories—are intertwined, we find not just a sharp observer, an individual capable of crafting precise syntheses with economical language, but also an intellectual who seeks the essence of life in everyday reality, along with the paradoxes that bring him profound disappointment.

Cinema, in its most fundamental form, is considered a language. Like any type of language, it embodies attributes for communication not only through images, dialogue, or narration but also through that deeply layered and abstract dimension that critics have identified as the “poetry” of cinema. Poetic cinema often describes films that prioritize mood, atmosphere, and visual beauty over traditional narrative structure and subject matter, according to art theorists. However, poetry itself is the magic that helps. Written poetry, along with studies and other forms, creates the brilliance that Pier Paolo Pasolini and a number of other creators considered moments of awakening or ways to communicate amidst uncertainty, where art insistently seeks its path.

Anagnosti, as an observer and poet, subjects himself to this world and identifies with it, whether through the unfulfilled longing for his homeland or when faced with the hesitation in front of his desk with a blank sheet of paper. He invites us into something otherworldly, that which we often fear in earthly life yet remains entirely human. His poetry allows us to feel something even when he addresses the day, a woman, eros, memory, daily life, and above all, the phenomenon of existence.

“Skelete vargjesh rrapëllimë
Rënkime, vaje e ulërimë
Varrezë ferr e drithërimë
Kufoma strofash pa ritm’ e rimë,” he describes this feeling.

Directors like Anagnosti, who belong to the family of “poetic directors,” are akin to those considered visual poets. Just as poets align tropes on a blank page to organize their emotions, these directors create captivating images and sequences that reach beyond surface-level narrative, delving deeply into the realms of the subconscious, memory, and existential reflection.

An art critic might rightly say that only such artists know how to weave what we expect from cinematography—the meaning of mise-en-scène, the right sound, and the perfect editing—into a cohesive, aesthetically pleasing whole for the audience. Our author resides in this realm, finding nourishment both in the grand legacy of time and in the varied experiences brought by contemplating his birthplace, which he identifies as a kind of spiritual Ithaca:

“ The view is breathtaking from both perspectives or angles, a filmmaker or painter might thoughtfully say.

The mountains form a bay, partially with coarse sand, surrounded by steep, rugged gray cliffs, washed clean of soil. Up to the height where the raging waves crash during the winter season, when the sky darkens, and the sea roars with waves smashing against the rocky shore, causing even the walls of this dwelling perched on the hillside to tremble.

Oh, blessed land!” 

Another unique aspect of our author is that in this new book, as in his earlier works, he does not overburden the reader with exhaustive descriptions. He offers the reader imagery because Anagnosti’s creation always instinctively conveys an accompanying image within a composition, which, like in his longer prose (and even in his shorter creations, which possess a valuable laconicism), is nearly Teutonic. He is sparing with excessive words and emotions, yet profoundly rich in describing them, as seen in “Koburja nga Evropa” (The Gun from Europe). He knows how to convey both drama and maintain audience tension using minimalist elements.

There are many metaphysical elements, possibly linked to the heritage and entire anthropology of the area he originates from, but more so in the way he naturally intertwines real and abstract things. Many times in this volume, he is laconic because he knows well that brevity is an artistic tool that clears the waters and confronts you directly with the subject, which inherently has a boundary—age, dimension—that he often experiences in this volume:

“Po pse ngutem vallë?!
Ah, fort mirë e di pse ngutem,
 po as vetes nuk guxoj t’ja pohoj…!
Nuk guxoj!”

As rarely seen in this volume, one encounters genuine reflections on existence and the questions that being anticipates and struggles with at every moment: the afterlife. He knows well that the reader should not fear it but rather journey through it with him. Indeed, Anagnosti’s hand takes and leads you into very ordinary yet deeply valuable situations. This volume is not filled with difficult metaphors, overrefinements, or contrivances, but rather a disarming simplicity where the reader will feel the breeze of the real, as Anagnosti approaches forms with a simplicity that is almost mathematical. His solid education, rationality born from study and contemplation, and the model in his mind focus on truth, which cannot sustain the excess of words and inflated expressions.

In a series of aphorisms and prose fragments, in this edition, he shares lessons from life. He does not withhold them but chooses to share them with the public, entrusting his thoughts from a long experience to his readers:

  • ”The orphaned daughter of the school janitor: ‘My mother works as a servant… in paradise.’
  • Forgetfulness sometimes serves as a refuge where sin hides.
  • Life is also a great unspoken truth.
  • Actors carry many roles within themselves that ‘sleep’; the right author and director are needed to awaken them.”

Have past pains shaken him, stifled in his soul? Family? Likely, yes. Those who know Himarë and Vuno, his birthplace, where many of the tales in this volume come to life, as well as his thoughts, will feel the fibers of the village and understand the weight carried by the invisible force of DNA in the individual. Few authors among us have their birthplace hold as much love and significance as it does for him. This memory, the history of his family (his father and mother), intertwines with his long journey, where we encounter Anagnosti the poet and thinker and the expressions he extracts from himself, gifting them to a long lineage of ancestors and descendants.

As you read, you realize that his poetry is neither tense nor jarring. It is somewhat “clumsy,” but as you travel with it, you suddenly feel it flows like water. It melts you, makes you feel elevated, at times perplexed, but remains gentle and dear. The stern Anagnosti suddenly becomes playful, tender when you read his cultivated eroticism; thoughtful, when you sense his observations; heartfelt, when you savor his admiration; his boundless love for his wife; and his apotheosis for his daughters and descendants. And, humor. A spirit like his cannot go without humor and a kind of self-irony characteristic of strong minds.

Thus, this volume is a wholly tangible book. It often draws its roots from deep thought, community, life memories, contemplations, physical sensations, and even health. Anagnosti knows the mission of poetry: he has never been afraid to resist, to recover, and to address even the most difficult topics. To make the meaning of life beautiful, he brings his descendants, who now all together belong to Treni ADN, an extraordinary poem.

He grieves when temporarily separated from his daughters, in foreign airports; with a few strokes, he describes a pain that pierces to the bone. He marvels at the arrivals of his grandsons and granddaughter, blessing them and foretelling their fate like an oracle, wishing them love for family, and confessing that they have given him the greatest motivation in life. He is materialized not just spiritually with them but also physically. He journeys with them, feeling profoundly grateful.

The grateful Anagnosti dedicates himself to his wife, Roza, the distinguished artist but also the fellow traveler who has endured life’s storms and tensions, born from his thoughts and the periods when he had to give birth to his creations.

And suddenly, a motive appears, one that seems to be deeply rooted, not merely in its metaphysical concept but in how a being must confront it. Poetry helps him engage in dialogue with it. The professional depiction of death in the poems of this volume demonstrates sensitivity and a careful use of language. This time, the use of metaphors or symbolism to convey the idea of death is restrained. He observes it in the cycle of life and presents it through the idea of transition or transformation. These poems are truly intimate, where the energy is shared with the reader not as anxiety but as salvation. Perhaps the audience is asked to participate in some way, though Anagnosti is very reserved about drawing them in. It feels as though, in his vision, we face an altar where the poet invites the public with questions in a candid atmosphere of dialogue.

In these poems, one can also see his philosophical convictions and his religious understanding of life and death. As a Christian, though this is not explicitly declared, Anagnosti views death not only as a physical event but also as a spiritual transformation—a passage from earthly life to eternal life with God. This belief is reflected in many of his poems, which explore the spiritual dimensions of death and the idea of the soul’s journey beyond this life. He shares his dilemma in 

“Ngushëllimi”:
Vdekje
e di që do vish. 
Si vdekja e di! 
Dhe shumë gjëra, si vdekja i di!
Një ditë me diell,
 shi apo erë
E di që do hysh
pa “trokitur” në derë!
Keq më vjen t’iki
Dhe veten pyes:
 “Do ngjitem në qiell
në ferr do zbres?!”

Yet, Anagnosti “forgets” something—his work already represents a different sublimity in the face of death, as many characters, truly his creations, have tragically died. Far from death, all his creations carry breath and survival because Anagnosti’s work respects every aspect of life, as well as the tool that materializes his thoughts: the Albanian language. He sees himself modestly as a contributor to it. Spiritually, he has dedicated himself not only to the word but also to the image and metaphorical meaning that the Albanian language has made precious.

“Shpresoj të ‘jetoj’
 Në verbin e shkruar
Të gjuhës shqipe
Nga Zoti bekuar
Vetë ngushëllim
 vetë mashtrim?!”

Anyone who thinks he has surrendered will be disappointed again. He is proud, not only of what he gave to Albania but also of what he offered to life, which he expresses simply and by name through his biological legacy. His grateful proclamation for his family rises above the category of the sublime:

Marigò
Jon
Anteo
Stefan!
Tre nipa, një mbesë
Tre princa, një princeshë
Ja skuadra ime fitimtare
Që sfidë i bën kohës,
gravitetit, harresës
Dhe dritë i jep shpresës!
Rrugë të mbarë ADN fisnike!

It feels like the closing of a meditation but not of the ongoing dialogue with the renowned artist Dhimitër Anagnosti, who continues to converse with us through his distinguished and valuable contributions to the history of Albanian art.

  1. “Lulekuqet mbi mure” (Red Poppies on the Walls) Lulekuqet mbi mure on IMDb
  2. “Përrallë nga e kaluara” (A Tale from the Past) Përrallë nga e kaluara on IMDb
  3. “Ngadhnjim mbi vdekjen” (Triumph Over Death) Ngadhnjim mbi vdekjen on IMDb
  4. “Guximtarët” (The Brave Ones) Guximtarët on IMDb
  5.  “Në fillim të verës” (At the Beginning of Summer) Në fillim të verës on IMDb
  6. “Malet me blerim mbuluar” (Mountains Covered with Greenery) Malet me blerim mbuluar on IMDb

      

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